[bvega]

I thank you for the pleasant interchange of the ideas.

1) You are certainly right that square tubing CAN be stronger than round tubing but you are also right that there are a lot of variables. For instance diameter/dimensions, thickness, intersections, and welds. I will tell you that the original 60's frame was computer generated by FORD MOTOR COMPANY. As you know back then all of their cars were like tanks. Another thing to consider is that the frames are now made with thicker steel tubing than before. Meaning the frames are stronger then ever. Also they put more reinforcements around the passenger cockpit area then previously. This new CSX car is better than any previous 60's car. I drove both and I can tell you that both are comparable in handling although the suspension seemed much more stable at high loads of torque with the CSX than the SPF. Also my background as an ASE certified technician of 40 years and dealership mechanic for both foreign and domestic makes I have driven and owned and serviced all types of cars from Shelby gt 350 - Ferrari- Jaguar E types - Porsche - Mercedes and the list goes on. There is no pretense attached to this.

2) Shelby has been using fiberglass all through their history in street and racing. For instance GT40 had a fiberglass version for LeMans. The problem for the aluminum is mainly durability and user friendly qualities. Gary Patterson at SAI was jumping all over this fiberglass body but would not even barely lean against an Aluminum cobra that we also test drove. Look they are going to drive the same as an aluminum one only they are more durable for a street version that I wanted.

I am not a museum curator but I do want to own a genuine CSX car. And if Shebly can deliver that car at a reasonable price then my dreams have been answered and those dreams were and are still held by most of the replica owners and lovers. Afterall that is why SPF became the company it is and the threat to SAI and ulitmately created the competition required to make a CSX affordable.


With the logic of you slippery slop then we might as well start putting honda engines in these cars. The current CSX cars are part of an evolution and continuation of the original model. This is not a CAV cobra. CAV is just a subcontractor. The parts are Shelby, the design is Shelby therefore it is a Shelby. That is all there is to it. Even the original was a compilation of subcontracted work. Some was Shelby, Some was Ford, Some was AC, Some was done by various suppliers all over the world and bodies coming from england, italy, etc.


You would really spend another $30,000 for an aluminum dent magnet? Unless you are Mr. Petersen and you have an automotice museum then be practical when it comes to money. That is why SAI moved to offshore operations. It's all about money. If the product is the same you go with the original product whether it is fiberglass or aluminum.

I will tell you my history the past few years on my quest for an AC Cobra. I first wanted the CSX cars because they were by Shebly and they were continuation and genuine, more genuiune than anything replicating it. But like most of us blue collar folk they were way too overpriced compared to the fit and finish of a SPF. The SPF was a well executed similar copy. The price of the SPF made it an attractive, affordable, alternative to the real thing. Now the real thing is attainable and affordable and still the real thing. If I go to the supermarket and see that coca cola is only .10 more than the store brand I will by the coca cola because why not buy the real thing if you can. And you still will find the odd fellow that likes the taste of the store brand cola better and even those that just have to save that .10. My dream was to own a Shelby Cobra and now that I can afford it I will. I do thank all of the replica companies for keeping the dream alive for all of us during Shelby's absence and during the resurgence of this phenomenal love affair for this classic design.

In conclusion I think that is obvious that Mr. Shelby is having a renaissance of his passion for motorsports. You can see that he is reliving the triumphant past where Ford power was dominating the world racing circuit more than ever before. He was making history and now he is letting all of us relive it with him. The winds blowing are whispering of Shelby and Ford getting back together to make a Shelby Mustang again starting in 2005. This means that we are experiencing the renaissance of muscle cars and much of what makes life worth living.